Mayor Michael Bloomberg may not be running for president, but he's still trying to make his mark on the race. NY1's Molly Kroon filed the following report.

Speaking at a Minnesota Independence Party fundraiser Friday, Bloomberg complimented both presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama ö but fell short of endorsing one of them.

"We're lucky this year: we have two candidates who have shown, on at least some issues, that they are capable of thinking and acting independently of the special interests," said the mayor.

A long-time Democrat, Bloomberg changed parties to run for mayor on the Republican line. Last year, he jumped ship again, becoming an independent as he contemplated a third-party presidential run.

Now, the mayor has been rumored to be on the vice presidential short list for both parties. But far from ingratiating himself to them, he called on the candidates to step up to the plate on important issues.

"I'm going to work from now to Election Day to urge, cajole, and embarrass, if you will, these two candidates to say explicitly how they would answer to the American public," said Bloomberg.

The billionaire mayor, who bank rolled both of his own campaigns, called on parties to start paying the bill for their own primaries ö something he tried to do in the city during his first term, and failed.

"Why should taxpayers be forced to pay the costs of each party's nominating meetings, especially when the parties so often exclude voters and pass laws that make it difficult for candidates to get on the ballot?" asked Bloomberg.

But while Bloomberg railed against special interest money in politics, he's donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to New York State Republicans, a body that has been largely supportive of his agenda in Albany.

After his speech, the mayor was joined by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger near the bridge that collapsed last year, to highlight the country's decaying infrastructure.

- Molly Kroon